Word: bacterias
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1999
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...treat," he told us. "Every animal out there makes some, and Nature takes care of it." Modeled on a wetlands, his plant is a series of tanks open to sunlight. The sewage flows through so slowly you can't see it move. At the front end, there are only bacteria. Farther down you can find worms, shrimp, and then fish. "When we wanted to start the plant running, we needed all the little beasties you find in nature, so we went to a few ditches around Providence and collected a bucket of slop, then poured that mess into our tank...
...spray being used is not expected to hurt people, mammals or birds. It consists of naturally occurring bacteria that are lethal only to caterpillars. Some environmental groups and residents have opposed the program because the spray will eliminate butterflies and other insects as well. But officials of the state agriculture departments believe the indigenous species will quickly regenerate...
...their study, which was reported in the research journal Science, Michigan's Yves Poirier and his colleagues capitalized on the environmental know-how of a select group of bacteria. In much the same way that humans store excess nutrients as fat, these germs turn sugar into the plastic molecule polyhydroxybutyrate, or PHB. They can also digest the polymer, which means it is biodegradable...
...researchers transplanted the gene for PHB from the bacteria into relatives of the mustard plant. Using energy from the sun and carbon dioxide from the air, the plants manufactured significant amounts of phb. Unfortunately, the process also stunted their growth. But eventually, Poirier expects, scientists will learn how to regulate the hybridization procedure well enough to keep these plastic producers healthy, and perhaps one day alleviate guilt over discarded bottles and wrappers...
...scientists at the University of Genoa, Italy, noted that the rays coming from unshielded quartz-halogen lamps can induce mutations in the DNA of bacteria. Since genetic mutations are one cause of cancer, they decided to move up a few rungs on the evolutionary ladder. They subjected specially bred hairless mice to the lights 12 hours a day for a year and found that every one developed skin tumors -- most benign, but some cancerous. The research, reported in the British journal Nature, involved only a handful of mice, so it was labeled a pilot study. But the results were...